Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro won his first career title on Sunday when he beat French second seed Richard Gasquet 6-4, 7-5 in the final of the Stuttgart claycourt tournament.
Del Potro, the world No. 65, was also playing in his first final and succeeds world No. 2 Rafael Nadal as champion.
Nadal pulled out of the tournament following his epic Wimbledon final win over Roger Federer on July 6.
PHOTO: EPA
Gasquet admitted he had played badly.
“I was frustrated but he played well. It was difficult to play my best tennis, the court was too slow,” he said.
■ ROBREDO DOWNS CZECH
PHOTO: AFP
AFP, BASTAD, SWEDEN
Spanish third seed Tommy Robredo captured his first title of the season at the Swedish Open on Sunday with a comfortable 6-4, 6-1 win over fourth-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych.
It was the second title in Bastad for Robredo, who was also champion in 2006, and the seventh of his career.
“I am obviously very happy to have won the title here in Bastad once again,” the 26-year-old said.
“I love this tournament and it feels great to win it here. I want to thank everyone who makes this tournament happen. The people here are very nice, treat us really well, and this is one of the reasons why the players love to play in Bastad,” he said.
Berdych said he was hampered by a painful knee as the final progressed.
“I felt something in my knee in the sixth game of the match when I was down 3-2,” said the fourth seed.
“I’m not sure what the pain is but since I just came back from an ankle injury I was afraid to force too much. The crowd was amazing so I didn’t want to retire without trying,” Berdych said.
■ SANTORO DEFENDS TITLE
AFP, NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
France’s Fabrice Santoro successfully defended his title at the ATP Hall of Fame Championship, easily beating India’s Prakash Amritraj 6-3, 7-5 in Sunday’s final.
The 35-year-old second seed cruised to victory in just one hour, 14 minutes at the grasscourt event.
Santoro is ranked 57th and had not won an ATP title since beating compatriot Nicolas Mahut in last year’s Newport final.
Amritraj was trying to end a 10-year ATP singles title drought for Indian players.
The veteran Santoro picked up his sixth career title by beating the wild card Amritraj.
Only three players have been older champions than Santoro on the ATP Tour, including Jimmy Connors, who won four titles at a more advanced age than the Frenchman.
“That is a good point, to be old. You are very calm, even when you are nervous,” Santoro said. “I am very lucky. It is not only luck ... I think I show the same passion and energy that I did five, 10, 15 years ago, maybe more.”
■ ERRANI WINS IN PALERMO
AP, PALERMO, SICILY
Sara Errani captured her first WTA Tour singles title when she beat Mariya Koryttseva of Ukraine 6-2, 6-3 in the Palermo International final on Sunday.
The chair umpire awarded fifth-seeded Errani an ace on her first match point after going down to check the mark on the red clay court and overruling the linesman’s call.
“It was a great match for me; maybe neither of us played our best but it was very important for me to win today,” Errani said.
“I think the difference between us was I was stronger in the long points. It was difficult to stay physically strong the whole week because it’s very hot here, but I think I did better in the end,” she said.
She is the first Italian to win the singles crown in Palermo.
■ CORNET BEATS KLEPAC
AFP, BUDAPEST
French second seed Alize Cornet overcame a stomach complaint to claim her maiden career title on Sunday, beating unseeded Slovenian Andreja Klepac 7-6 (7/5), 6-3 to win the Budapest claycourt title.
Klepac enjoyed a 5-3 lead in the first set before Cornet rallied.
“I was sick this morning. I went to see the doctor before my match and I was not sure I’d be able to play, so it was tough in the beginning,” Cornet said.
“But when I was behind I just fought as hard as I could, and after I won the first set things went much better for me the rest of the match,” she said.
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